West Ham make David Moyes decision before huge Nottingham Forest clash

West Ham United remain reluctant to sack manager David Moyes despite the club slipping into the Premier League relegation zone, 90min understands.

The Hammers were sunk 2-0 by fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, with that defeat coming 24 hours after Everton and Bournemouth had picked up vital wins over Leeds United and Wolves respectively.

The manner of West Ham’s defeat at Spurs, who have been struggling themselves, was particularly concerning for supporters, as the Hammers offered very little goal threat throughout the game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Moyes admitted that ‘every game is big’ in his post-match interview and challenged his players to stand up and be counted. He also lamented the lapses in concentration that have plagued West Ham’s season to date.

But despite the mounting pressure on the Scot’s shoulders, 90min understands that Moyes still has the backing of majority owner David Sullivan and the club’s board.

He will remain in charge for Saturday’s crunch clash with an improving Nottingham Forest at London Stadium at the very least, where a win appears to be vital ahead of games against bogey-team Brighton, Aston Villa and Premier League champions Manchester City.

This isn’t the first time that Moyes has appeared to be on the brink. 90min revealed in January that the Hammers were considering the 59-year-old’s future ahead of the clash with fellow strugglers Everton – a game Moyes would win 2-0 – while his position was also called into question prior to the World Cup.

West Ham are the only team in the Premier League’s bottom six who have decided against making a managerial change, with supporters of Moyes feeling he has enough credit in the bank after two hugely successful seasons in east London yielded back-to-back qualification for European competition.

Why are West Ham sticking with Moyes?

David Moyes appears to be clinging onto his job at West Ham, but he may be granted a stay of execution simply because David Sullivan doesn’t believe there to be a better available candidate to take over.

That might sound strange to say but outside of Sam Allardyce, Harry Redknapp and other specialists in ‘firefighting’, who is out of work and willing to take a chance on trying to keep West Ham up? Arguably Moyes is the man West Ham would have turned to were it another manager going through this crisis, and that could be a factor in why Sullivan is remaining loyal.

Rafa Benitez’s name has been suggested but his style of management doesn’t necessarily align with the club’s long-term goals – it’s also hard to imagine him accepting a short-term contract just to keep West Ham up.